Finally, an overview of the Bee Gees career that grasps the scope of their achievements while both understanding their music and remaining clear-eyed about their failures. Critics of the time tore them apart, seldom offering any worthwhile feedback at all, much less serious criticism.
Not a big fan of armchair psychoanalysis normally but everything rings true to me. The notion of the group as something akin to aliens due to their isolated early years on the Isle of Man causes a lot of pieces of the puzzle to fall in place for me. We forget how truly isolated a place like the Isle of Man could be in postwar Britain.
Missing is an appreciation of their outrageously gifted rhythm section, with Blue Weaver on keys, Dennis Byron on drums, and, apparently, Maurice on bass. The bass parts are so insanely in the pocket that it's a little hard for me to accept that it was Maurice, though he played many instruments well. Could it be there was an uncredited studio bassist playing these parts? I've never heard a peep to contrary and have always hoped it was Maurice.
There was talk of their much younger brother Andy joining the group. He had a few hits in the mid to late 70s written by Barry but died of a drug overdose. before anything could come of it. The elder brothers' harmony style was complete and it is a little hard to imagine how he would have fit in.
The Isle of Man isn't that isolated, it's just not quite within easy day trip range of London, Manchester, Liverpool or Glasgow, the cities with the big, important music scenes.
It's four hours by ferry, or 2 hours 45 by fast catamaran ferry, from Liverpool. It's pretty close. It used to be a big tourist destination in the Victorian age when there weren't cheap flights.
I've just realised that I read "Isle of Wight" for "Isle of Man", which invalidates my comment entirely. Maybe I was thinking of the IoW music festival.
Not a big fan of armchair psychoanalysis normally but everything rings true to me. The notion of the group as something akin to aliens due to their isolated early years on the Isle of Man causes a lot of pieces of the puzzle to fall in place for me. We forget how truly isolated a place like the Isle of Man could be in postwar Britain.
Missing is an appreciation of their outrageously gifted rhythm section, with Blue Weaver on keys, Dennis Byron on drums, and, apparently, Maurice on bass. The bass parts are so insanely in the pocket that it's a little hard for me to accept that it was Maurice, though he played many instruments well. Could it be there was an uncredited studio bassist playing these parts? I've never heard a peep to contrary and have always hoped it was Maurice.
There was talk of their much younger brother Andy joining the group. He had a few hits in the mid to late 70s written by Barry but died of a drug overdose. before anything could come of it. The elder brothers' harmony style was complete and it is a little hard to imagine how he would have fit in.